Langley Gets New Jobs, But Not For Long

May 28, 1993|By WILLIAM H. MCMICHAEL Daily Press

LANGLEY AIR FORCE BASE — New jobs are coming to Langley under an Air Force reorganization plan announced Thursday, but the gain will be short-lived.

By midsummer, the base's Air Combat Command will add 138 airmen and 10 civilians. But ``between 1994 and 1995,'' according to the announcement, the command will lose 174 military and 50 civilian positions. The net result will be a loss of 36 military and 40 civilian jobs.

The job loss is regrettable, but it could have been worse, said Rep. Herbert H. Bateman, R-Newport News.

``The Air Force is going to be 25 to 30 percent smaller at the end of `93 than it was five years ago, and yet we have not suffered that kind of diminishment in the Air Force presence at Langley Air Force Base.

"So we have to count our blessings as of this point.''

Air Force bases in 42 states are affected. Hit hardest will be Michigan, New Jersey, California, Florida and South Carolina. New York and Nevada stand to gain the most.

The restructuring takes into account base closings and realignments already under way as well as those proposed by the 1993 Base Closure and Realignment Commission, which is due to report to President Clinton on July 1.

One of the states most broadly affected is California, where significant changes would be made at eight bases. The state would have a net loss of nearly 1,000 active-duty positions.

Michigan would lose 2,354 active-duty slots as a result of the proposed closing of K.I. Sawyer Air Force Base, home of the 410th Bomber Wing.

In Georgia, the 116th Fighter Wing, an Air National Guard unit that flies tactical aircraft, would move from Dobbins Air Reserve Base to Robins Air Force Base and convert to B-1B bombers. Until now, the entire fleet of B1-B bombers - the most advanced heavy bomber now operating in the Air Force - has always been exclusively part of the active-duty Air Force.

Maj. Robert Perry, a spokesman at Air Combat Command at Langley, said he could not provide an estimate of the number of heavy bombers that will be put in the reserves. He said there are 95 B1-Bs and about 134 B-52s in service now.

In a related move, the 46th Fighter Training Squadron of the Air Force Reserve at Barksdale Air Force Base, La., is to convert from A-10 close-air support aircraft to B-52H bombers in late 1993. The B-52s technically would remain part of the active-duty force but for the first time would be flown by reserve pilots and crews, officials said.

All of the Langley's new jobs are staff or headquarters-type positions within the Air Combat Command.

Langley spokesman 1st Lt. John Smith said the changes won't result in any gain or loss of aircraft or equipment, nor any increase in 1st Fighter Wing operations at this time.

The near-term additions won't cause any strains at the base, according to command spokesman Master Sgt. Rusty Trahan. ``We shouldn't have a problem absorbing that number over the summer,'' he said.

* The Associated Press contributed to this report.

CHANGES AT LANGLEY AFB

By midsummer, the following changes are expected at Langley Air Force:

* The brand-new Air Force Doctrine Command will be activated at Langley July 21. Langley gains 16 military, four civilian jobs.

* Headquarters Air Rescue Service, not currently at Langley, will deactivate and be realigned with Air Combat Command. Langley gains 58 military, four civilian jobs.

* The Air Force Rescue Coordination Center will transfer to Langley to be realigned with Air Combat Command. Langley gains 38 military jobs, one civilian job.

* Air Combat Command's 1st Communications Group will gain 26 military jobs and one civilian job.